What you see in decoration magazines or online inspirational sites is an artificial world. It is a similar illusion as with clothing fashion magazines. Locations are decorated often in a way that can be beautiful but which will create stress and cost a lot if you want create the same environment.
Look closer at the magazine images and ask yourself:
- if you remove the beautiful fresh flower arrangement in the room, would you still enjoy the room as is? If you really enjoy the fresh flowers and can afford to purchase them or take them from your garden daily without stress then this is your choice to make.
- isn’t there something missing in the bathroom pictures that probably are needed in your everyday-life? You will rarely see bath rugs in the bathroom, or there won’t be any soap or tooth brushes exposed. In general, I also would recommend to organize or put all these away until you need them… but honestly, somehow the rug needs to dry… so it probably will either stay on the floor, be hanged on a towel holder or perhaps on the edge of the bathtub.
- the sun is always shining! Whether it is real or artificial light, it will always be set for the perfect picture but we all know the weather changes and so does the light exposure in your home
- it can also look like a phantom house… you rarely get to see a human being or dog or cat in the picture… it is often pictured as if it would be a museum
- often too many cushions on the bed, especially if it is hotel room pictures… I had customer who tried to follow the style… after some weeks they put everything away because it was too much work to arrange and didn’t know where to put all these cushions when going to sleep!
- a fur blanket on the bed is really heavy unless you sleep on top of it! In the winter you will often see a bedroom decoration that is very dramatic. Although very dramatic, not very practical!
- you rarely see personal items. You will see mostly brand-new products (that you should buy of course) and no family picture, nothing unique
- you frequently see the same chair, table or light, over and over again in a magazine so you come to believe that the decoration market doesn’t offer any other product! Even if I can appreciate some great and well-known designer products, I find it quite sad to see how flats or homes look quite impersonal because they will all have the same items.
My recommendations: opt for a beautiful, unique and practical decoration.
- be aware that advertisements are show cases. The same way you see a great outfit on a model… most likely look completely different on you… well it’s the same with home decoration
- what you can definitely pick from a magazine as inspiration: color palette ideas, how to combine different textures, storage ideas, how to display items etc…
- look at my recommendations on how to decorate… because it’s about you, your family and the place where you live.
- in addition, to look good a place has to be comfortable and practical in order for you to feel good and happy.
- be personal, express yourself the way you are, you don’t have to have what you see everywhere else. Look for more unique pieces that could fit in your home. You’ll be more interesting if you don’t belong to the designers’ club! Be free, be unique!
Conclusion
Decoration magazines are fantastic to look for inspiration, new ideas… and I read a lot of them. Just be aware that if you try to copy a room one to one you might be unhappy with the results, simply because it isn’t who you are, your real personality or the way you live. It’s just like with people, real interesting ones are the ones who embrace their uniqueness and don’t try to belong to the club of correct-appearance and status. Whatever style you feel comfortable with, even if it is classic or traditional, be yourself, confident and unique. Mother nature made all of us different, let’s celebrate it!